Find Funding

You can apply for funding at Gust. In order to apply there, you will need the following documents:
• Executive Summary- including the customer problem, target market, business model, competitive advantages, products/services, and your sales/marketing strategy
• Funding information- including any previous rounds of funding raised and the parameters of your current round of funding.
• Pitch Deck

Our Investment Focus: There are certain types of opportunities that we feel more comfortable in financially and strategically supporting. They have, in general, the following characteristics:

Technology
• A unique technology, process, or program
• Intellectual Property (e.g. patents) or a clearly established product innovation process
• A technology that solves an unmet or poorly met need

Company
• Market or operational competitive barriers that favor the company
• Located within a 350 mile radius of Chicago
• Scalable operations

Management Team
A management team capable of moving the business through the early stage growth process. The management team will have the following attributes:
• Competence
• Perseverance
• Track record
• Decency
• Integrity
• Coachable
• Personal financial commitment (“Skin in the game”)
• Sense of Urgency
• Burning desire to succeed

Market
• A large and targetable market opportunity
• Ability to have niche dominance in the market place
• A growth strategy that does not require a national sales structure to succeed

Investment Request
• A minority ownership position in the company. We are not a bank, we don’t loan money.
• A growth strategy that allows for incremental funding based on performance
• Return of the invested capital in 3–7 years with an expected internal rate of
return of 45-65+%
• Realistic expectations of significant near-term and long-term growth
• The potential to achieve early milestones leading to demonstrably increased valuation
• A stage of development that allows for our participation as a director/manager/observer on the Corporate Board
• We do not participate as a small player in a larger venture round